If you've bought a house before, some parts of this book may seem somewhat elementary. And, admittedly, a lot of the information about how much you can afford is available on the web on various home-buying sites. On the other hand, I found the location-specific information very helpful, and the advice in the book is solid and reliable.

The real winners are those who are preparing to buy a house for the first time. This book will take you through pretty much all the steps, from thinking about what you want in a house and finding good neighborhoods, through figuring out how much you can afford. It's an excellent reference guide for somebody who's just starting to think about buying, and will be useful all the way through closing. IIf I had to choose just one book on buying a house, it would be this one.

I used the Nolo Press tenants' rights book in the past to (successfully) sue my deposit-greedy/law-breaking landlords. I just used this book to buy my first home in the competitive Bay Area (yes, it's still highly competitive even in these "tough times"). Nolo's book is accurate and insightful, written in a voice that's accessible and, at times, fun and tongue-in-cheek. The organization of information, as usual, is right on. And the links and helpful sidebars are fantastic! Don't waste your money on other books. I swear this one is the only book you'll need.

This book was recommended to us by a friend who bought a home in California. Since then, we've bought it for other friends and family. Nolo Press publishes excellent books, and this is no exception. If you only read one book on buying a home (in California), this should be it.

I have read everything there is to read about Ricky and I found this book the most interesting, inspiring, fun and cool. Get this one!

Please help me in obtaining a copy of Ricky's book coz i just LOOOOVE his music and him too. But I would like to know more about him. My name is Surie and I am from Lusaka, Zambia. in the Central part of Africa.

Ricky,

Why do you have only young women in you shows dancing with you. There are differnt type of women that buy your CD for their children. I think, personally that if you held a contest for a mother, as to why they allow or buy your CD for their child, you would have a larger audience. Why you ask because people would want to know! Anything that promotes you people will will listen to! I for example, am a 36 year old mother of three. Why would a person think that I would not like your music? You are a young person and if you would want your popularity to follow you then I personally think it would be wise to think not only of the young "teens" out there. I like your music, your voice, if I did not I would not let my CHILDREN buy your music. I know that this will not ever get to you personally befor your "agents" read it first, but you have to think of where the money is coming from for your success. WHAT CAN YOU DO TO PLEASE A FAN? HAVE YOUR AGENTS WRITE BACK AND SAY WHAT? THANK YOU FOR INPUT. WHICH I HAVE CC TO MY OWN EMAIL. GOOD LUCK. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. A BUYER AND A FAN FROM MY DAUGHTER.

It is shocking that A Taste Of Chinatown is no longer in print. I have collected a bookshelf of Chinese cookbooks over the years, but the only one that I could not do without is Joie Warner's. This cookbook focuses on the American Chinatown, giving truly accurate but easy-to-follow preparations of the classic dishes that are part of the American experience of Chinese food. Although other cookbooks may offer a broader range of more authentic examples of true Chinese cuisine, no other book that I know captures the subtle differences in ratios, seasonings and methods that give the American Chinese restaurant its unique, memorable taste. If you love your local Chinese food (and you don't live in China), you can not go another day without this cookbook.

If you can find the book, buy it! Every item in this book is perfection.

I bought A Taste of Chinatown at a used-book sale several years ago for the princely sum of 50 cents. Every time I use this book I tell my wife: "This is the best purchase I have ever made." I would say the same thing if I had paid 100 dollars for it. I own a number of other Chinese cookbooks and the results from the recipes in this book are so far superior to anything else in my collection that there is almost no comparison. Simply put, EVERY dish I have ever made from a recipe in this book has been absolutely delicious. I am an experienced an accomplished cook yet I can make that claim about none of the other 40 or so cookbooks that I own. The only place this book comes up short is in the number and variety of dishes. Please, Joie, give us another book like this!

This is an excellent book! I work at a summer camp and always need new games to play with the kids and this book has been a wonderful source of inspiration. I'm dealing with kids that range in age from 6 to 15 and this book has games good for the entire age range. I have about 15 party & game books and this one definitely gets used more than all the others. Most of the games have been a big hit with the kids, too!

180 pages of 180 seperate games. Explains rules in simple lines, details matierial/props needed and gives variations.

I use for my 2years old party, wedding showers, baby showers, BBQ, or just get togethers with friends or family. I'm invited to advise on all party planning committees or fundraisers and this is my secret weapon.

I've just started to really look at the book and it seems great! A lot of the games that I've read seem like fun. I have an extensive collection of games but these seem different and have a lot of appeal.

This is the beginning of American literature. And these short works I think tell the tale more clearly than that confusing (though still great) big book Moby Dick. Melville wrote from an outsiders perspective and he was an outsider as perhaps all Americans were because we did not yet have an identity as a people. Melville explores our institutions of justice and our ability to comprehend life through them in Billy Budd in the way a foreigner would examine justice and understanding in a land whose logic he was unfamiliar with. He seems to ask "how will our sense of justice be different than France's or England's and therby make us a different nation than theirs?" or even more simply "Is real understanding(of ourselves, or others) ever possible?" Melville is very much the anti-idealist in a work like The Piazza in which one valley dweller imagines existence on the upper slopes to be grander than his own only to travel there one day and be made aware of the opposite. So there is no dreaming colonist in Melville, in him we have a measured study of ourselves as we were in his day, and perhaps still are, a dreaming people,a restless people with only the vaguest notions of what life and its true nature is. The strangest story in this collection is Benito Cereno which is perhaps the work which most defines a democratic nation's uneasy alliance of peoples and points of view. In that work there is no one defining perspective, only differing views of one event that remains disturbingly unclear as all of Melville's worlds are. In Melville we have an author defining what we are or perhaps more importantly what our problems will be in the future. Interesting short works full of that rare kind of insight that does not seem to be trapped in its time but somehow seems to have seen what is to come. There is the idea that a new nation has of itself and a confidence that in the works of Melville is challenged. The mystery in these works is the mystery at the heart of existence and life remains inscrutable even here in this new land with its new ways. In Moby Dick the innocent Ishmael is the only one spared, in Billy Budd(Melville's last tale) the innocent is the one sacrificed. Melville's vision is not a comfortable one. The strange Bartelby,the Scrivener is a tale where personality is consumed by an impersonal system. The story strikes an odd alienated tone which will later be taken up by Kafka and Pynchon and countless others.

This edition of Melville's short fiction is, I think,
the best...certainly a real bargain at this price.
In this one volume, the reader gets all of Melville's
short fiction -- plus the novella, *Billy Budd, Sailor*
(the Harrison Hayford/Merton M. Sealts, Jr. "definitive"
Reading Text published by the Univ. of Chicago in 1962).
The collection is edited and has an excellent
"Introduction" by Warner Berthoff.
The selections are each preceded by a very informative
"Note" which tells you when the piece first appeared
and in what periodical. Berthoff also supplies in each
"Note" delicious suggestive context insights...which
help the appreciative/analytical/interpretive process
begin to percolate.
The 1st selection is "The Town-Ho's Story" (a
chapter from Melville's novel *Moby-Dick*). But
this chapter was printed in *Harper's New Monthly
Magazine* in October 1851 (according to Berthoff's
"Note")as a portion of a work-in-progress.
The collection presents the pieces in the CHRONOLOGICAL
order of their publication in various magazines.
But it also contains "The Two Temples," which
Berthoff says was rejected for publication. So,
the collection contains all of Melville's "short"
fictional pieces, including prose pieces meant to
accompany poems. These pieces in the collection
include: "The Marquis de Grandvin," "Three 'Jack
Gentian Sketches,'" "John Marr," and "Daniel Orme."
The collection concludes with *Billy Budd, Sailor."
All of the *Piazza Tales* are in this collection
along with "The Piazza " piece, itself.
This is a fine collection. The Northwestern/
Newberry editions of Melville's works are nice,
but expensive. And you would have to get 2
separate volumes to also get the *Billy Budd,
Sailor* which you get included in this one
volume.
However, what the N/N edition of Melville's
prose pieces gives you which this collection by
Berthoff does not (their title is: *The Piazza
Tales and Other Prose Pieces: 1839-1860*)are:
"Fragments from a Writing Desk" (1839),
Melville's inspired essay of idolatry and
insight, "Hawthorne and His Mosses" (17 and 24
Aug. 1850), many other uncollected pieces,
Melville's reconstructed lectures from his
stint as a public speaker/"performer" (Yikes!)
"Statues in Rome," "The South Seas," and
"Traveling." There are also copious notes,
scholarly information, photo facsimiles,
and other helpful items in the N/N edition.
But, unless you are a scholar, a Melville
fanatic, or financially unfrugal, BUY this
edition by Berthoff and published by the
Perennial Library of Harper & Row.
* * * * * * * * *

Melville is, of course, best known for his epic novel Moby Dick, but he also wrote some great short fiction, including Billy Budd and Bartleby.

In Bartleby, he may have written one of the first significant pieces of literature to give voice to the dehumanizing aspects of the modern industrial compartmentalized workplace. Has there ever been a less desirable job title than scrivener? They were employed by lawyers to transcribe legal documents, and if that isn't inhuman enough, the office in which Bartleby works has windows which face the brick walls of surrounding skyscrapers. Bartleby mystifies his employer, our narrator, first by refusing to assist in proof reading documents, averring "I would prefer not to." But in short order he is preferring not to do most anything, including leave the building after he is fired. Bartleby is finally removed by the police and starves to death in the Tombs, preferring not to eat.

Melville keeps Bartleby, like Moby Dick, shrouded in mystery. The only explanation offered for his behavior is that he was forced to leave his patronage job in a dead letter office when administrations changed over. This leaves the reader free to freight Bartleby with any significance one desires and makes him a truly haunting figure.

GRADE: A

The Lighthouse Mystery

The Lighthouse Mystery is about a family that rents a lighthouse, and they see a lady on the beach every night. At twelve o'clock they here a person down stairs, and the dog, Watch starts barking and doesn't stop. Oh, I almost for got the charectors were Henry the big brother, Violet little sister, Benny little brother , Jessy big sister,Mr Alden the Grandfather, and Larry cook a scary stranger that becomes a friend. I don't know about you, but I loved reading it. It had so much adventure. And it always got more mysterious in each chapter.So if you don't like mysterious things, than you wouldn't want to read this book. But you never know. Your probably asking why I picked this book? Well ill tell you, I like books that have mysterys. If you dont like mysterys than i wouldnt suggest you read this book but if you do like mystery books than you would love this book so i suggest you read it and i hope you will like reading this book and theres what i think.

The story is an adventure because a family moves to a lighthouse for vacations.They tried to be friends with every body,and they tried to solve a mystery.This is a very exciting book.I liked it because it has a lot of things that are cool.So
I recommend it to people and readers because they are gingto love it.It will take a while,but it is a nice story.It takes place on the beach and it's about friendship.

This book is exciting! It takes my breath away! SO cool!

Marina Warner's _From the Beast to the Blonde_ is a wonderful and engaging work concerning the cultural history of fairy tales. Warner explores the "stock characters" and stories of traditional tales, and in the process creates an excellent work of scholarship and criticism in an area of literature that has been relegated to the nursery, but didn't start there.

If you love fairy tales and their backgrounds, buy this book. It's worth the read. Warner is an excellent author, and she makes a very good point regarding the role of women in the passing along of fairy tales to the next generation. This is a terrific book on fairy tales, and folklore in general.

Why do people pass on fairy tales from generation to generation? The tales are violent and seem sexist to modern eyes. Warner's book sets the truth about fairy tales into an historical perspective.

This contrasts with Bruno Bettelheim's "The Uses of Enchantment" which suggests that there is an opportunity for psychological exploration within each fairy tale if we identify with the various characters. In other words, there is a wicked stepmother, a forlorn orphan and a powerful prince etc within each of us. I found his ideas enjoyable and useful but I think Warner's historical analysis is more realistic.

She tackles such contentious issues as that of the wicked stepmother, pointing out the complex situation that was created for a woman marrying a widow who already had children. The temptation to treat those children badly in favour of her own children was quite real because of her financial dependence on her new husband. Hence the need for tales that warned against women behaving like that. There is a lot of other fascinating material in the book, such as the development of the image of St Anne (reputed to be Jesus' grandmother) into the image of dear Nan, from which we get the name Nana for grandmothers and for nannies as well. I didn't agree with Warner's analysis of the little mermaid and have posted my own one on the Amazon site for Hans Anderson's Fairy Stories.

Those interested in this kind of book might also like to read A.D. Hope's book " A Midsummer Eve's Dream". It is surprising how few fairies and elves there are in regular fairy stories - a case of art imitating life perhaps! But there are some, and Hope's book helps us to understand how the idea of fairies developed in England. It seems that it was the suppression of gods and goddesses by Christianity that gave rise to miniaturised images of them in the form of fairies. Hope regrets this but, from the number of descriptions he gives of midnight cavorts around fairy mounds, followed by sexual excesses of various sorts, I think the fairies were probably doing a lot to promote sexually transmitted diseases!

A book that I've lost but was invaluable was Catherine Brigges? Bigge? "A Dictionary of Fairies". It told you everything you needed to know about the subject. Should you thank a fairy? Not if you ever wanted to see it again. What is glamor? It's one thing with film stars and another with fairies. Planning a visit to fairy land? It's a more dangerous place than most realise. However if you love to wander in the fairyland of our collective imagination, then consider Warner's book or any of the other books that I've mentioned. They are useful guides to help you find your way around.

I didn't really think that owls were wise, but these things are relative. Owls are probably "wiser" than sparrows, but certainly not in the same IQ league as ravens and crows. And, although I didn't suppose that bats were completely blind (Shedd assures us that "most actually see quite well"), I knew they didn't depend on their eyes to catch prey. There is a lot of other "obvious" and generally well-known information here, but there is also a wealth of knowledge about thirty or so of the familiar animals of North America that I didn't know or even suspect. I didn't realize, for example, that there are "frequency modulation" (FM) bats as well as ones that use a "constant frequency" (CF), and a third group (CF-FM types) that use both methods of echolocation to zero in on prey. For another example, while I knew that grizzlies are bigger than black bears, I didn't know that Alaskan brown bears are the biggest bears of all, and are not just another name for grizzlies.

What makes this a superior book on the wildlife of North America is the wealth of experience that Shedd brings to the subject and his imminently readable style, combining lots of concrete fact with well-told anecdote. He does an especially good job of clearly defining each species. The chapter on bears is as vivid and memorable as a PBS special. The easy reading (and this is always the case) belies what I know was the very hard work that went into the construction of every sentence. Typical of Shedd's illustrative style (in the floral mode) is this description from page 68: "...a bat's flight is as unpredictable and indecipherable as the movements of a prestidigitator's hands."

Additionally there are a number of beautiful full-page black and white illustrations of the animals by Trudy Nicholson that delight the eye. She has the knack of not only accurate detail, as Shedd notes in the Acknowledgments, but of infusing the animals with a sense of an appropriate and pleasing emotional aspect.

Politically speaking, and every wildlife book in this day and age has its political position, this book steers a middle course. Shedd, himself a hunter and a conservationist, eschews both the tree-hugging sentimentality of the left and the purely commercial mentality of the right.

Attractive and popular, Owls Aren't Wise and Bats Aren't Blind, would make an ideal present for anyone interested in wildlife, from grandchildren to grandparents.

Warner Shedd reveals his wealth of knowledge about the outdoors in a style that is pure Vermonter. Although it seems as though at times he is refuting a so-called myth by re-stating the myth as fact, Shedd's enthusiasm for his subject and willingness to share personal anectdotes overcomes his sometimes pedantic style. The illustrations are a capable addition to the book, and anyone who comes to this well will go away knowing a bit more about their subject. My irrational exuberance is not all just because the author is my Mother's sister's husband! Good luck, Uncle Warner!

Warner Shedd's book has deepened my whole family's enjoyment of the animals in our midst. We have read it to the kids before bed and shared it with company. After reading a chapter I feel as refreshed as I would after a leisurely stroll through the woods.

I live surrounded by red squirrels, but it was not until I read Owls Aren't Wise & Bats Aren't Blind that I could really see them. Shedd articulated what my peripheral senses have been barraged with all these years, and brought these cute rascals into focus for the first time.

Likewise, my rodent-phobic mother has grown positively fond of the muskrat who visits her suburban yard (It better stay out of the house though.). Shedd helped her identify the animal and understand what a positive contribution it made to her environment.

My son recently found a dead porcupine in the woods. Shedd's book got us looking at its quills under the microscope and equipped us to make an educated guess about its demise.

If you have even an ancillary interest in the American Civil War, this is essential to read and to own. I consult my copy on a weekly basis and I've owned it for twenty years. Warner writes well and succinctly about all of the Confederate Generals. Each biography is accompanied by a single photograph of the subject. The book is like a large biographical dictionary, easy to navigate and peruse at your leisure. If you are interested in in-depth material on any of these Generals, it's best to consult an individual biography of your chosen favorite. But if you have a casual interest or merely want an essential reference tool, this is a "must have."

Many historians have compiled lists of the most influential and indispensable civil war books of the 20th century. Invariably, Warner's book is included, along with the companion volume on Union Generals. It's not fancy, but it remains one of the preeminent biographical tools for any civil war historian.

Warner does an excellent job in giving short biographies on all 425 Confederate generals, including a picture of each general. An excellent reference guide and a must have for your Civil War library.

This is a must have book that outlines each Confederate General who fought in the Civil War. From their beginning to the end of their life, each General of the Confederacy is listed, as well as their picture. From the great and popular Generals such as Robert E. Lee, Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson to more obscure generals such as Francis Nicholls and Paul Octave Hebert, each of these are analyzed and given honest treatment to their conduct and bravery during the Civil War. This is a defifite MUST have to any Civil War Historian, Librarian or enthusiast. Highly Recommended!

Like some other reviewers, I am currently looking for a teaching position. I ordered this book and found it had very good information on where to find jobs, how to write a resume, and how to answer possible interview questions. I would say the resume part was the most useful so far, as few resume books have examples of teacher resumes. From the examples provided I was able to construct a more condensed resume from the three-page one I previously had.

However, the jury is out in so far as whether I will be able to obtain employment in the field even with this advice. The reason I did not give this book five stars is that there was not a whole lot of information for those people who are changing careers in mid-life. Most of the emphasis seemed directed at those traditional college age graduates with little or no employment experience.

I found this book to be a must have for all teachers. As a recent graduate with a teaching degree, I was nervous about finding the right teaching job for me. I used the techniques and suggestions in the book. I was offered a job from my very first teaching interview.

I just got this book and have only flipped through it, but already I can tell it will be a great asset. I am a recent graduate with a teaching degree. Our last year we had several seminars and workshops on interviews and finding a job. I have notes scattered all over the place. This book puts all the same info in one place and a whole lot more. Really great interview tips. Lots of potential questions and what not to do or say during an interview. I can't wait to read this book in depth! A definite "must have" in the increasing competitiveness of the teaching job market!